Xi urges all-out rescue after fire accident

Premier Li Qiang also made an instruction, calling for all-out efforts to organize search and rescue work, properly handle the aftermath of the fire, prevent secondary accidents, investigate the cause of the fire as soon as possible and hold those responsible accountable in accordance with the law.

Li said the Office of the Work Safety Committee of the State Council, China's Cabinet, should further guide and urge local authorities to strengthen bottom line thinking and worst-case scenario thinking, comprehensively investigate workplace safety risks and hidden dangers, and ensure that responsibilities and measures are fully implemented to prevent major and serious accidents.

Following the instructions, the Ministry of Emergency Management sent a working group to the site of the factory fire to provide guidance. Fujian has also mobilized forces to spare no effort in treating the injured and handling on-site response. Local fire and rescue teams have deployed more than 500 personnel.

People in charge of the footwear factory have been taken into custody and the company's accounts frozen.

A firefighter at the scene told China Central Television that while the exact cause of the fire remains under investigation, a preliminary assessment indicates that it started in a workshop on the first floor of the factory.

Raw materials piled up on the stairs of the factory slowed down firefighting efforts and hampered rescue operations, the firefighter said.